Like this:

Lord, I have rested. I have watched my cells leak charred fluid and have felt the burden of confronting demons despite my withered state. I understand now that we weren’t meant to overcome mortality but to embrace it. So, I have rested. I have stemmed the flow and have bandaged my soul and am ready.

But what of the world? The affairs of mankind continued but I was left ignored, Lord. Repaired and rested I visit places and see that I am being forgotten and overtaken by a new breed. Yet, they do not understand, Lord.

Darkness falls, which readies me the same way mortals are readied at dawn. Invigorated.

Like this:

“This is really where it begins, in a room with your feet up with your dudes. Too young to shave, dreaming about the big body Benzes you’re gonna push. Obviously for me, it’s in Marcy, but this could be anywhere – a basement in the midwest, a backyard in Cali, an Oldsmobile somewhere down South. The danger is that it’s just talk; then again, the danger is that it’s not. I believe you can speak things into existence.” – Jay-Z; footnote from the first three lines of American Dreamin’, taken from his book Decoded given to me for Christmas by my wonderful wife.

Like this:

“Even if you’re lying flat on your back, you can work on your mind. And it says something about the character of the individual, if he sits out on the sidelines the moment he gets an injury. It’s like he’s looking for an excuse to bail out. That guy won’t go very far. If you’re starting out with a disadvantage due to health, this gives you an opportunity to find ways to get round the problem, or strengthen those areas that aren’t affected, and it builds character to take this route rather than to just say, ‘I quit.’” Steve Morris